"Balocchi e profumi" (lit. "Toys and perfumes") is a 1928 Italian song composed by E.A. Mario. Originally launched by Gennaro Pasquariello, it was popularized by

Anna Fougez Maria Annina Laganà Pappacena, best known as Anna Fougez (9 July 1894 – 11 September 1966), was an Italian actress and singer. Born in Taranto, Italy, at 6 years old Pappacena became orphan of both her parents, and was adopted by her aunt. S ...

, as to become a classic in the repertoire of Italian

café-chantant (; French: lit. 'singing café'), , or is a type of musical establishment associated with the Belle Époque in France. The music was generally lighthearted and sometimes risqué or even bawdy but, as opposed to the cabaret tradition, not par ...

artists. Described as "Canzone-

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", the melodramatic lyrics tell the story of a vain mother who ignores her daughter's requests for a toy, until the little girl is seriously ill; the mother soon buys the toys, but it's too late. The song was later covered by numerous artists, including

Claudio Villa Claudio Villa (born Claudio Pica; 1 January 1926 – 7 February 1987) was an Italian singer and actor. Biography Tenor Claudio Villa was born Claudio Pica in the Trastevere quarter of Rome in 1926. He recorded over 3000 songs, sold 45 million ...

Milva Maria Ilva Biolcati, (; 17 July 1939 – 23 April 2021), known as Milva (), was an Italian singer, stage and film actress, and television personality. She was also known as ''La Rossa'' (Italian for "The Redhead"), due to the characteristic co ...

Milly Milly is a feminine given name, sometimes used as a short form (hypocorism) of Mildred, Amelia, Emily, Millicent, Camilla, Camila, Camille, Camile, Emilia etc. It may refer to: People * Milly Alcock (born 2000), Australian actress * Milly ...

Angela Luce Angela Luce (born 3 December 1937) is an Italian film actress and singer of '' canzone napoletana''. She has appeared in 80 films since 1958. Partial filmography * '' La sposa'' (1958) - Margherita * ''Avventura a Capri'' (1959) - Francesca * ...

Nilla Pizzi Adionilla Pizzi (; 16 April 1919 – 12 March 2011), known by her stage name Nilla Pizzi, was an Italian singer and actress. Born in Sant'Agata Bolognese, Italy, she was particularly famous in Italy during the 1950s and 1960s. She is well know ...

Luciano Tajoli Luciano Tajoli (17 April 1920 – 3 August 1996) was an Italian singer and actor. Music festival Luciano Tajoli participated several times (1961, 1962, 1963, and 1970) in the Sanremo Music Festival, winning in 1961 with the song Al di là.Ma ...

Aurelio Fierro Aurelio Fierro (13 September 1923 – 11 March 2005) was an Italian actor and singer, specialising in songs in the Neapolitan dialect. Career He was born in Montella, in the Province of Avellino, Italy. His singing career began in 1951, a ...

Emilio Pericoli Emilio Pericoli (7 January 1928 – 9 April 2013) was an Italian singer. He was born in Cesenatico, Romagna, Italy. Pericoli's success was closely tied to the Sanremo Festival. He recorded a cover version of the song, " Al di là", by festiva ...

Giorgio Consolini Giorgio Consolini (28 August 1920 – 28 April 2012) was an Italian singer. Biography Consolini was born on 28 August 1920, in Bologna. In 1954, he won the Sanremo Music Festival in partnership with Gino Latilla, with the song "Tutte le mamme ...

Quartetto Italiano The Quartetto Italiano () was a string quartet founded in Reggio Emilia in 1945. They made their debut in 1945 in Carpi when all four players were still in their early 20s. They were originally named Nuovo Quartetto Italiano (to distinguish the ...

. The lyrics of the song inspired the 1953 film ''Balocchi e profumi'' directed by Natale Montillo and F.M. De Bernardi, and the 1979 film ''Profumi e balocchi'' directed by Angelo Jacono. The song was parodied by

Renato Zero Renato Fiacchini (born 30 September 1950), known by the stage name Renato Zero (), is an Italian singer-songwriter, producer, dancer and actor whose career spans from the 1960s to the 2020s. Zero is the only artist to have reached the top of t ...

in his 1981 song "Profumi, balocchi & maritozzi".

References

Italian songs 1928 songs {{1920s-song-stub